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“The Communist Manifesto” got a shoutout during the 2020 Oscars. Julia Reichert, the co-director of best documentary winner “American Factory,” which was produced by former President Barack Obama’s new film company, apparently quoted from Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’ infamous book during her acceptance speech on Sunday night. “Working people have it harder and harder these days — and we believe that things will get better when workers of the world unite,” Reichert said. The quote appeared to be a riff on the last lines of the 1848 political document, which are frequently translated from German as “Workers of the...

By this point in awards season, Brad Pitt’s march toward a Best Supporting Actor Oscar seems all but inevitable. Not to say anyone’s complaining. In fact, the loudest knock against the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star is that his warm-up acceptance speeches at events like the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, and the BAFTAs have been a little too, well, perfect. [snip] Fenway Strategies is a speechwriting and communications firm founded by former Obama administration officials Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor. Although the firm’s most obvious connection is to the political arena, helping speakers prep TED...

by Lynn Foster “The Communist Manifesto” got a shoutout during the 2020 Oscars. Julia Reichert, the co-director of best documentary winner “American Factory,” which was produced by former President Barack Obama’s new film company, apparently quoted from Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’ infamous book during her acceptance speech on Sunday night. “Working people have it harder and harder these days — and we believe that things will get better when workers of the world unite,” Reichert said. The quote was a riff on the last lines of the 1848 political document, which are frequently translated from German as “Workers of the...

Actor-comedian Ricky Gervais viciously trolled Hollywood celebrities just hours ahead of Sunday’s Academy Awards, preemptively deflating their self-important acceptance speeches in a series of humorous tweets. Ricky Gervais took the stars to task for their progressive views on migrant workers, noting that many celebrities employ migrants in their homes to perform menial and backbreaking work. “I can’t wait to hear all your inspirational speeches about equality, and it’s great that the 3 hours you’re here tonight is the only time your badly paid migrant house staff will get some time off to sleep this week” https://t.co/fsFbdDkv6u — Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais)...

The votes being counted in Ireland today. Yesterday's projection as polls closed put the left-wing Sinn Fein Party in the top three of Irish political parties with its best showing yet in a southern Irish election. Early declared results show Sinn Fein a clear winner.... In Switzerland a law against "homophobia" projected to have won in a referendum..... More unusual activity related to Iowa's Democrat caucus last Monday. The Iowa Democratic Party today awarded the popular vote winner Bernie Sanders only 12 delegates to the national convention while the candidate who ran in second place, Pete Buttigieg, was given 14...

Here are the winners at the 92nd annual Academy Awards that handed out Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood:Best PictureParasite (Neon) A Barunson E&A Production Kwak Sin Ae and Bong Joon Ho, ProducersActress in a Leading RoleRenée Zellweger Judy (LD Entertainment and Roadside Attractions)Actor in a Leading RoleJoaquin Phoenix Joker (Warner Bros.)DirectingParasite (Neon) Bong Joon HoOriginal Song“(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again” from Rocketman (Paramount) Music by Elton John Lyric by Bernie Taupin Original ScoreJoker (Warner Bros.) Hildur GuðnadóttirInternational FeatureParasite A Barunson E&A Production South KoreaMakeup and HairstylingBombshell (Lionsgate) Kazu Hiro, Anne Morgan and Vivian Baker Visual Effects1917 (Universal/Amblin...

For the second consecutive year, the Academy Awards ceremony will not have a TV host. The broadcast will focus on "huge entertainment value, big musical numbers, big comedy and star power," according to ABC, the television network airing the award show. "Let me confirm it now, together with the Academy, that there will be no traditional host this year," announced ABC Entertainment president Karey Burke at the Television Critics Association's winter press tour on Wednesday.

During his speech, Pitt also got political, calling out the Trump impeachment trial for blocking the testimony of former national security adviser John Bolton.

Hollywood’s Super Bowl for movie buffs is upon us. And you won’t want to miss the 2020 Oscars on Feb. 9, which will see the year’s hottest stars and most gifted creatives go head-to-head for a shot at entertainment’s most coveted gold trophy: an Academy Award. The live ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Calif., will once again forgo a traditional host this year following last year’s controversy with comedian Kevin Hart, who ultimately stepped down. The honors will instead boast a slew of megastars lined up to announce, as well as a cannon of A-list musicians who will...

Is "1917" a wartime shoo-in for best picture, or might "Parasite" make some Oscar history Sunday night? The 92nd annual Academy Awards brings to a close yet another awards season, one in which the main acting categories are led by performers who've run roughshod over their competition. But the race for best picture is somewhat more up in the air. Sam Mendes' World War I thriller "1917" is the closest to a favorite, having won important Golden Globe, Producers Guild and Directors Guild awards. But Bong Joon-ho's South Korean black comedy "Parasite," which took the best ensemble award at the...

The postpartum recovery period, also referred to as the “fourth trimester” by many experts, can be an incredibly challenging time for mothers. Not only has a woman’s body gone through many changes and is recovering from the toll childbirth often takes on the body, but she also has a newborn baby to care for. Frida Mom, a brand dedicated to postpartum recovery, set out to air a commercial to raise awareness of what women go through during this often overlooked (but extremely significant) period during the 92nd Academy Awards, airing Sunday—but their commercial was apparently rejected by ABC for being...

A tradition stretching back nearly two decades, the annual gift bag from marketing company Distinctive Assets gives select nominees in the Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Director categories up to 75 bespoke gifts. Peasant that I am, I can’t get the image of Brad Pitt wandering around with a branded paper bag containing travel size shaving foam and some cat food, delighted with his ‘free stuff,’ out of my head. But these ‘bags’ are more like lorry loads, so they get discreetly delivered the next day, not handed out at an afterparty. The...

I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality... – Martin Luther King It’s Martin Luther King Day, and all across the land people are once again expressing outrage over the lack of diversity in this year’s Oscar nominees. It’s like 2015, the first time Hollywood people of color protested #OscarsSoWhite. 2015: Obama joined David Oyelowo, who portrayed Martin Luther King Jr. in the movie "Selma," and Oprah, who produced the film, in protest against...

Stephen King appeared to backtrack on his recent comments about "never" considering "diversity in matters of art" after criticism from a number of prominent artists, including Ava DuVernay. "The Shining" writer on Tuesday weighed in on the controversy that ensued after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences nominated a nearly all-white slate for acting Oscars. "For me, the diversity issue did not come up," King, who is a voting member of the Academy, wrote on Twitter of his nominations for the best picture, best adapted screenplay and best original screenplay categories. "That said, I would never consider diversity...

The inclusion of Spanish actor Antonio Banderas as one of the few “coloured” Oscar nominees by some U.S. media has sparked controversy and an immediate reaction from social networks, which have been quick to point out that he is European and white. Hollywood publications such as Deadline and Vanity Fair mentioned Banderas as one of the few cases of “people of colour”” nominated for Oscars, after Monday’s official announcement of the candidates for the Hollywood Academy Awards. Both newspapers cited Banderas along with African-American actress Cynthia Erivo as the only “black” actors nominated for this year’s Oscars, in the face...

Stephen King is under fire on Twitter after downplaying the role of diversity in selecting this year’s Academy Award nominees. “I would never consider diversity in matters of art. Only quality,” the 72-year-old tweeted on Tuesday. “It seems to me that to do otherwise would be wrong.” In an earlier tweet, King wrote that diversity was not even discussed in the categories he was tasked with nominating. “As a writer, I am allowed to nominate in just 3 categories: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Screenplay,” he explained. “For me, the diversity issue—as it applies to individual actors...

Barack Obama had something to celebrate today because the Netflix documentary he and wife Michelle produced, "American Factory," was predictably nominated for an Oscar for best documentary.“Glad to see American Factory’s Oscar nod for Best Documentary,” Obama tweeted. "It’s the kind of story we don’t see often enough and it’s exactly what Michelle and I hope to achieve with Higher Ground." Higher Ground is the name of the Obamas' production company. Last year they were accused of "deplorable behavior" over a trademark dispute over the name of the company."Congrats to the incredible filmmakers and entire team!” Obama added. Glad...

link only:https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2020/01/13/oscar-nominations-2020-biggest-snubs/4434765002/

Until Issa Rae and John Cho announced “Harriet” star Cynthia Erivo as a nominee for best actress for the 92nd Academy Awards, it was looking increasingly likely that the Oscars were heading for a repeat of the #OscarsSoWhite controversy that drove the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences four years ago to aggressively begin diversifying its membership. Instead, Erivo saved the Academy from the embarrassment of yet another slate of all-white acting nominees — but just barely. This year’s Oscar nominations for acting still managed to shut out a wealth of highly regarded performances by actors of color who...

“Joker,” the controversial drama about the mentally ill Batman villain that sparked backlash with its realistic depictions of extreme violence, triumphed at the 92nd annual Academy Awards nominations on Monday morning, earning 11 nods, the most of any film. Three films were close behind with 10 nominations: “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Quentin Tarantino’s fictional ode to 1960s Hollywood; “The Irishman,” Martin Scorsese’s mob drama starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci that clocks in at three and a half hours; and “1917,” the World War I epic that centers on two British soldiers on a dangerous...